Is the business Protected?
If you have a business in the events or health and well-being sector then, in all likelihood, you’ve considered the risks involved. If you’ve got this covered then great! But have you gone far enough in protecting your business and your clients?
If you run a small to medium sized business that offers wellness and event services to other businesses, then you most probably use freelancers to assist you with the different services which you offer. This on its own brings some risk to your business which you should be minimising if you want your business to have strong foundations on which to grow.
In this blog, we are going to explain what you should be doing to ensure your business is compliant and you’ve assessed all the risks which may open you up to liability.
Contract or Terms & Conditions
There’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to which legal document you should use when working with clients. Some prefer the simplicity of having a set of terms and conditions. Whilst others want to go for the belt and braces approach of getting a signature on the dotted line. Terms and Conditions do form a legally binding contract if certain formalities are performed in advance so that they are enforceable. However, getting a contract signed will ultimately provide you with more protection in the event of a dispute because you remove the risk of an argument over whether the client agreed to your terms & conditions.
Having either of these documents is a great starting point in protecting your business.
Contract with Freelancers
It’s so important to have a contract in place with any freelancers you use to help you in your business. This will protect you should your freelancer do something wrong. Ultimately, if something does go wrong the client will pursue you for any compensation, they believe they are entitled to. This is because they do not have a direct contractual relationship with your freelancer.
You should consider the terms you are working under with your client and try to mirror these in any contract you have with your freelancers. Doing this will ensure that you have maximum protection if your client raises a dispute in relation to one of your freelancers.
Employees
If you’ve got to the point where it makes more sense to employ rather than outsource then you should consider what policies, you need in place to protect your business. There are many policies that may apply to you and we’re not going to go into too much detail here but if you have client-facing employees then you need to make sure they understand what is expected of them. So, we’re talking about things like a health and safety policy, fire safety policy, safeguarding, assessing risks,
Insurance
It goes without saying that you should have business insurance as a safety net if something goes wrong. But you’d be surprised to hear that some business owners don’t even consider this. Getting the right insurance is crucial so when shopping around for a policy make sure you declare everything in relation to the services you are offering to ensure you are fully covered. Some insurance providers will also cover your freelancers on your policy, whereas others won’t. You need to make sure that if your policy doesn’t cover any wrongdoing by your freelancers that they have their own insurance cover in place.
Qualifications and Credentials
If you are offering services which require the service provider to have a certain qualification or accreditation, then do your due diligence on any freelancers and employees who claim to have the required credentials.
There may also be a need for someone to be regulated, depending on the service they provide. Again, this should be something you are checking and monitoring during your relationship with the person or business. Remember, if something goes wrong these are the sort of questions that are going to crop up in a dispute. It may also mean that your insurance or their insurance won’t pay out!
Conclusion
Remember, communication is key in any business. But when you are working with freelancers who are your main client-facing service providers it’s crucial that you communicate your needs and expectations well. Having the right legal documents and policies in place will provide you with the peace of mind that you’ve done all you can to protect your business. Regular health and safety audits, risk assessments and training both internally and on-site will minimise the impact anything unforeseen may have on your business.
If you’re a bit confused about what you need to do to protect your business then you contact Kate and Kirsty from K&K Legal Consulting by email to: lawyers@kkbservices.com or if you want to know more about their services they offer check out their website: https://www.kkbservices.com